A Life Less Ordinary

Fern Chua is the award-winning founder of FERN, a Malaysian sustainable and high-end fashion label rediscovering the elegance of the ancient Asian fabric art form, Batik.   Fern and I chatted earlier this year on the unexpected path that led her to Batik, the challenges building and growing her team of artisans from the ground up, and pushing the boundaries of the UNESCO listed heritage.   Check out FERN’s incredible looks at fern.gallery or follow @fernbatikcollective on Instagram.

Tina Zaman is a comedian, writer, teacher and founder of Tight5Comedy a unique platform in Sydney’s comedy scene. Tight5’s comedians of colour and allies have entertained thousands of fans, handpicked for their originality and social impact. Acts are empowered to explore both their comedic and cultural identities in careful curated venues from theatres in Sydney’s Inner West to Ethiopian restaurants in the outer suburbs of the city.   Show host Udhara chatted with Tina about growing up in Los Angeles, how she landed in Australia by way of a teaching gig in Korea, and why she decided to double down on building a platform for Australia’s marginalised voices through Tight5Comedy.   Recorded in early 2021.   Thanks for listening to this episode of A Life Less Ordinary. To stay up to date with our latest episodes be sure to follow to the show.

Matthew Chapman is an entrepreneur and investor who has mastered the art of relationship building. His company ChapmanCG finds HR leaders for the world’s leading companies. He's an investor in Bawah Reserve, a luxurious and sustainable tropical island retreat that's a Condé Nast Traveler Top 10 resort of Asia. And he's a co-founder of the 300km Snowman Race in Bhutan, one of the world's toughest ultra-marathons in the world, focused on raising awareness of climate change.

  He does all this while living on a farm, Parihoa, in coastal New Zealand with his many collaborators working all over the planet.   Show host Udhara chatted with Matthew to talk about his beginnings in rural New South Wales, Australia, why he fell in love with Singapore and became a Singaporean citizen, how he builds his businesses, as well as his thoughts on remote work and the future of the 5-day work week.   Thanks for listening to this episode of A Life Less Ordinary. To stay up to date with our latest episodes be sure to subscribe to the show.

T.P. Tovenaar is a writer from London, born to Sri Lankan parents. For the last decade, she’s called Colombo home.

Her book, 'Mum’s the Word', is a collection of hilarious and heartwarming stories about the relationship between a Sri Lankan mother and her British-born daughter, both trying to live within a complex mix of cultures, customs and environment. The stories light-heartedly remind us that we’re more than our place of birth and that immigration isn’t a bad thing.

Show host Udhara and Tovenaar spoke about her career at the BBC, how she learned from crushing rejection, why diversity is one of humanity’s greatest strengths, and how her book makes you appreciate the joys of family.

Ivy Singh-Lim founded Bollywood Veggies Organic Farm with her husband in Kranji, a northwestern suburb about 22 kilometres from the towering skyline of Singapore, showing an alternative, greener side to the country.  Visitors can explore the village-like tropical farm, eat a mouth-watering, farm-to-table Nasi Lemak served on a banana leaf, and learn about the history of food and its influence on civilisation. In our Season 2 finale, hosts Vanessa Fernandez and Udhara de Silva visited her home in the middle of the farm, where she lives with her husband and dogs. They spoke about: 

• how she decided to start Bollywood Veggies 
• how at nearly 70 she has a lot in common with millennials than others 
• why in the context of Singapore, nature is the future.

A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.

Vinod Nair used the last of his life savings to set up a website and hire an intern. Today, that website, MoneySmart.sg, is Southeast Asia’s leading personal finance portal, helping people compare loans, insurance, and credit cards.   There’s been a lot of press coverage in Singapore about the big wins of his career, but show hosts Vanessa Fernandez and Udhara de Silvaspent time with him in MoneySmart HQ to talk about:

• Scaling MoneySmart from bootstrapped to funded company
• The Singaporean approach to personal financial
• How to find trustworthy financial experts
• The financial landscape of Singapore

A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.   If you loved this episode, check out our other episodes on Apple Podcasts! Subscribe to our show and please leave us a review.

Rosalyn Lee, or Rozz, is a Singaporean radio DJ and TV host with an incredibly adventurous career. She has featured in Elle and Esquire magazines, hosted Singapore’s hottest radio shows, and interviewed everyone from Lana del Ray to Gene Simmons. She has not one but two travel shows. The first is Rozz Recommends, where she explores the world on her terms. Highlights include her journey exploring Iran and surviving sub-zero temperatures at the North Pole. The second is Weird Food Diaries on Singapore’s Channel 5.   Show hosts Vanessa and Udhara visited Rozz at her home to talk about the challenges she faced early on in her career and how her irreverence and no-bullshit approach in life initially stopped her from getting gigs but eventually became her greatest asset.   A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.

Andrew Ing creates culture for a living, whose career is based on combining the cool with the commercial. In the early 90s he promoted concerts in Hong Kong for artists likes Diana Ross, Simply Red and Public Enemy. He then moved to Singapore to turn the nightclub Zouk into one of the top 10 clubs in the world and bringing electronic music culture to South East Asia. Today, he’s the Chief Operating Office of The Lo & Behold Group, a hospitality group that owns a few of Singapore’s hottest spots to eat, sleep, drink, and party.    Vanessa and Udhara chatted to Andrew in his Arab Quarter office about:

• His early adventures leading to a marketing career
• The four pillars of discovering new music
• The concept of clubs as cultural exchange spaces
• How he cultivated local talent alongside international megastars
• Developing Zouk into the epicentre of youth culture in Singapore 

If you loved this episode, check out our other episodes on Apple Podcasts! Subscribe to our show and please leave us a review.   A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.

Thomas Wee is a Singaporean fashion designer who has worked in the industry for over 4 decades. He is known for his masterful workmanship, cutting edge 3D forms and perfectly tailored suits.   After building several high-end fashion labels serving South-East Asia’s elite, the “King of the Jacket” took to teaching fashion design and pattern drafting for 11 years, and eventually made a sensational comeback at the Audi Fashion Festival Singapore 2008.   CNN’s Power List names Thomas as one of the 30 people who have shaped Singapore. Hosts Udhara and Vanessa chatted with him about many things, including:

• his childhood in colonial Singapore
• how his career began against all odds
• the Japanese concept of building a premium brand
• being a self-taught, lifelong learner

If you loved this episode, check out our other episodes on Apple Podcasts! Subscribe to our show and please leave us a review.   A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.

Theresa Goh is the first female Singaporean swimmer to qualify for the Paralympics. Vanessa and Udhara met the world-record breaker to talk about her childhood, how athletes compete over milliseconds to win races, being an openly gay public figure, and why accessibility should be a given in any space.

Theresa Goh is an ambassador for Singapore's LGBT non-profit, Pink Dot, a group for everyone, straight and gay, who support the belief that everyone deserves the freedom to love.

If you loved this episode, check out our other episodes on Apple Podcasts! Subscribe to our show and please leave us a review.   A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar and sponsored by Audio-Technica, who create high quality content creation tools.